Hore's Bridge, Tollymore Park, Newcastle, Co Down

Hore's Bridge is a small, rubble-built bridge of 1824, carrying a forest track over the Spinkwee River as it flows through Tollymore Park. It sits to the south-west of the centre of the park, in well-wooded surroundings.

The bridge has a single semicircular arch with slightly roughly dressed voussoirs. Its parapets are low, with rough vertical stone coping. At the centre of one parapet is a stone inscribed '1824', with a bench mark carved directly above it. At the centre of the other parapet is a carved shell motif. The initials 'W.H.' are also reportedly carved onto one of the parapets, though these could not be located at the time of survey. The track surface over the bridge is uneven.

The date stone confirms the bridge was built in 1824. The initials 'W.H.' suggest it was named after the Reverend William Hore, who appears to have been a friend — and possibly a relation — of the 3rd Earl of Roden, and who features as a correspondent in the Roden Papers (including letters dated 8 February 1825).

The bridge stands within the wider designed landscape of Tollymore Park, which has a long and layered history. In late medieval times, Tollymore and the surrounding townlands were under the lordship of the Magennis family of Upper Iveagh. In 1611, Brian MacHugh Magennis received royal confirmation of his ownership when King James I granted him seven and a half townlands, including the land now forming the park. Tollymore remained in the Magennis male line until around 1685, when Bernard Magennis died childless and the estate passed to his sister Ellen, who was married to William Hamilton. On Ellen's death the inheritance passed to their son James. His son, also named James, who inherited in 1701, was created Viscount Limerick in 1719 and Earl of Clanbrassil (of the second creation) in 1728.

This James Hamilton — popularly remembered by his earlier title of Lord Limerick — began developing Tollymore as a naturalistic landscape demesne around 1720. He enclosed much of the land to form a deer park, commenced large-scale tree planting, and built a hunting lodge and the 'Old Bridge'. He also rebuilt the parish church at Bryansford, the small estate village to the north of the park, which was named after his ancestor Brian Magennis. Around 1750 he began constructing a larger house, probably with design advice from the English architect Thomas Wright, who visited Ireland in 1746–47 and stayed at Tollymore Park in September 1746. Dr Pococke, in his Tour of Ireland of 1752, noted that Lord Limerick had completed two rooms of his new 'pretty lodge' by that date and had also built 'a thatch'd open place to dine in' on the south side of the Shimna River. The Clanbrassil Barn was added just to the north of the house in 1757, with Horn Bridge built to the south around the same time.

Lord Limerick died in 1758 and was succeeded by his son, also named James, who extended the new house and continued the tree planting. In the 1780s he erected the Barbican Gate at the eastern entrance of the park, the Gothic gate at the Bryansford entrance, a hermitage, Gothic follies and a steward's lodge on the Hilltown Road, and a number of bridges within the park including Ivy Bridge, Parnell's Bridge, and Foley's Bridge — the last named after his wife, Grace Foley. These additions, which also appear to have been influenced by Thomas Wright, together with the planting, made Tollymore one of the most admired estates in Ireland. Bernard Scalé's map of Tollymore of 1777 conveys the picturesque character of the park at this period, with a rolling landscape, extensive planting, meadows, rivers, streams, and woodland walks. An advertisement in the Belfast News-Letter of 26 April 1785 offered lodgings in Bryansford village, making much of their 'most pleasing prospect' of the Earl of Clanbrassil's 'much admired demesne, which is beautiful to the sight and extensive to the bounds', and noting that the wholesome air and 'herbage on which the goats feed makes it much frequented by ladies and gentlemen for the recovery of lost health'.

James, 2nd Viscount Limerick and 2nd Earl of Clanbrassil, died without issue in 1798, and the park passed to his sister Anne, wife of Robert Jocelyn, 1st Earl of Roden. Their son Robert, 2nd Earl of Roden, inherited the estate in 1802 and built the Bryansford and Barbican gate lodges, the latter now demolished. He also erected an obelisk monument to the east of the house in memory of his second son James, who died prematurely in 1812. The 2nd Earl and his successor, Robert the 3rd Earl, further developed Bryansford village, making it 'a pleasing place of residence for those persons that like a quiet retreat'. A Roman Catholic church was built at the eastern edge of the village in 1820, school houses in 1823 and 1826, and labourers' dwellings and the large dower house known as 'The Nest' were added around the same time. The 3rd Earl also constructed a water-powered saw mill within the demesne, and in 1865 added another small lodge to the east. He enlarged Tollymore House by adding an additional storey to the wings and a tall, somewhat incongruous, French château-style roof to the original central block.

Tollymore Park remained in Roden ownership until 1930, when the 8th Earl sold two thirds of the land to the Ministry of Agriculture for afforestation. The remaining third was bought by the Ministry in 1940, and during the Second World War Tollymore House and part of the grounds were used by the Army. After the war the house fell into disrepair and was demolished by Lord Roden in 1952. In 1955, Tollymore became the first state forest in Ireland to be designated a Forest Park and was opened to the public. It has continued to be developed for timber production, recreation, conservation and education since then. Although the house itself is gone, most of the park's 18th and early 19th century gates, bridges and lodges have survived.